Thumbs up!

[obsidian]

Learning to sculpt. Maybe if I get good enough phantasmagoria can hook me up with some Star Wars production work or something. Any tips on how to make a mould and cast it with silicone?











In before dongs.

[Κracus]

http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-a- ... d-materia/

Seems to have some good instructions on making a silicon mould.

Nice job on the finger though, what's that made of, is it just clay or is that actual stone/marble?

I've dabbled in sculpting as required in art classes I took when I was young but mostly stuck with drawing/illustration. I recently got some wood sculpting tools which I intend to put to use at some point in the near future once I've finished unpacking and setup my garage to do this. Either way keep us up to date with your creations, love this kind of stuff.

[HM-PuFFNSTuFF]

Wow, very impressive Obs!

(but why isn't it black?)

[seremtan]

modelling clay is racist

[Whiskey 7]

Yes, nice job thus far
Sorry too as I know zilch on molding.

[Theftbot]

http://imgur.com/gallery/K8oiYGv

[phantasmagoria]

Good job bro

Is it plasteline? as long as it's not made from sulphur based chavant then the silcone will be a doddle.

To mould it, mount it to a piece of card at the base of the thumb and fill in any gaps, make sure it's secure so that it doesn't float when you do the pour, probably best to use a bit of super glue. To wall it up, cut the bottom off of a plastic disposable cup and hot glue it in place around the thumb. Mix up your silicone and pour it from a nice height to minimise bubbles then leave it to cure. Make sure you thoroughly mix your silicone, wiping your stirrer several times on the side of the cup and the scooping it back into the mix. Never ever scrape the bottom of your cup to get the last dregs of silicone out as there's a chance it might be uncatalysed.

If the silicone is soft enough you might just be able to pull it castings straight out of the mould (you could suspend a screw or something in the wet resin before it sets so you have an anchor to pull it out) but if not you'll have to cut down one edge with a scalpel. If you do that then you should start off with cutting a wavey line 1/4" in so that it keys into place and then just cut a straight line down to your part. You don't need to cut it in half completely, just down one side in order to prise the casts out

I started off my career in mould shops so I can offer you any specific pointers if you need

[scared?]

Lol black artists...

[Tsakali]

nice. i've tried sculpting a while back with clay, and i quickly found that was a bad idea, as it would quickly dry out and break apart while manipulating it, if not properly kept moistened. It was an amateur attempt at home, with no proper instruction or any type of introduction.

[obsidian]

Is it plasteline?

Yup. It's cheap, reusable, does not dry, so I figured it would be a good material to practice with before I blow a lot of money on Super Sculpey. However, it's definitely not the best material to cast with since it's so soft. The idea to cast it came after. I think I would have to do a 2-part silicone mould since I can't exactly pull the plasticine out without it completely coming apart.

Any tips on what kind of silicone I need to get and how to best get it relatively cheaply? Can I use the stuff that comes in tubes at the hardware store, or is that not the same type/relatively expensive?

[PhoeniX]

Paint it black then go up to a child and pretend to rip it off your hand. The severity of their reaction (and future mental scaring) will show how good of a job you did.

[obsidian]

That's exactly why I'm making a silicone cast.

Also, all my lady friends (and LawL) would want one as dildos (butt plug).

[PhoeniX]

In that case make sure you don't sharpen the nail.

I'm interested as to how the question of "would you like a dildo shaped like my thumb?" came up though .

[phantasmagoria]

Any tips on what kind of silicone I need to get and how to best get it relatively cheaply? Can I use the stuff that comes in tubes at the hardware store, or is that not the same type/relatively expensive?

Technically you could use the hardware store stuff but it won't be much cheaper, it'll be a pain in the arse and your mould will be riddled with air bubbles. You're American yeh? Get some casting silicone from a craft store. The yank company Smooth-on do a range of small kits perfect for your needs which you should be able to pick up locally. If they don't have Smooth-on then there are loads of brands but and as long as you get a pourable RTV it'll be fine, you want a shore hardness around 20.

I just had a gander at their website, this is exactly the method I was describing, only they do it for a candle instead of a thumb :owned: :



Watch some of the other videos on their site, if you've got your heart set on doing a two part mould, here's another how to video, but i'm confident you'd be able to pull the plastecine out fine:



Good luck!

also, Super sculpey is good, but I personally find it's a bit dry. I'd recommend plasteline (not plastecine, they're different products) or NSP (none sulphur) chavant.

[phantasmagoria]

Oh, note that if you want a silicone rubber finger then you won't be able to make a silicone casting out of a silicone mould. They won't release. You can spray or brush in special liquid wax (which your hobby shop should sell) or vaseline into the mould to make sure they release or alternatively you can make the mould out of a urethane rubber or plaster. It might be a little too small to fibreglass but that would be an option too.